Emotional/Behavioral Disorders

Specific Learning Disabilities

Academic
Characteristics

Behavioral
Characteristics

Social
Characteristics

Strengths

the imperfect ability to listen,

think, speak, read, write, spell or
do mathematical calculations,
including conditions such as
perceptual disabilities, brain
injury, minimal brain
dysfunction, dyslexia, and
developmental aphasia,
difficulty learning certain
subjects; difficulty remembering
skills learned; inconsistent
academic deficits; difficulty
processing information; lack of
cognitive strategies; reading
difficulties; written language
deficits

Some display behavioral problems in

the classroom; however, there is no
known relationship between
behavioral problems and learning
disabilities; deficits in attention;
challenging behavior; poor motor
abilities

The characteristics that interfere with

a student's acquisition of reading or
writing skills can also interfere with
his or her ability to acquire or
interpret social behaviors. For
example, individuals may have
difficulties correctly interpreting
social situations and reading social
cues, and they may act impulsively
without identifying the consequences
of their behavior or recognizing the
feelings and concerns of others.
Social skills deficits; social/emotional
issues; expressive and receptive
language difficulties; low self-esteem

Material or spatial reasoning:

heightened ability to solve
problems with navigation, or
with the visualization of faces,
scenes, and objects;
interconnectedness: verbal
reasoning capacity to connect
seemingly disconnected ideas
(like analogies); narrative
reasoning: great memory for
personal experiences; dynamic
reasoning: ability to reason in
novel situations

Majority of students (83%) score

below the mean of the norm
group in a standardized test;
academic achievement and
problem behaviors are correlated
in students with emotional
disorders; deficits in
communication

externalizing behavior (can result in

problem behavior and physical
aggression); internalizing behavior
(can result in depression and anxiety);
often out of seat; talking out;
argumentative; easily frustrated;
antsy; edgy; verbally/physically
aggressive; lack of compliance; not
following directions; ignoring
authority;

Seen as lonely, unlikable, provoking,

and lacking in social competency;
inappropriate language/topics;
difficulty reading social cues;
sometimes lack sense of humor; lack
a sense of fair play & taking turns;
impulsive; challenge others;
complains often about feeling sick;
lying, stealing, & deceitfulness;
destruction of property; withdrawn;
lack of social interactions;
isolated/solitary; sleeping;
daydreaming; fantasizing;
psychosomatic

independent

Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder

(ADHD)
Communication Disorder
Speech / Language

Academic
Characteristics
Show significant academic
underachievement, poor
academic performance, and
educational problems;
increase in repeated grades,
use of remedial academic
services

Behavioral
Characteristics
Often seems inattentive to details,
difficulty sustaining attention,
difficulty with following
through, loses things, easily
distracted by the environment,
fidgets or squirms restlessly, talks
excessively, often interrupts, blurts
out answers before questions are
completed; have difficulty with
change, complex procedures, and
understanding rules; hyperactive;
easily distracted; poor
organizational skills

Social
Characteristics
Frequently misunderstood, low
self-esteem, difficulty in
relationships with peers,
depression/anxiety, and
procrastination; sleep difficulty;
difficulty with reading social
skills; lack of personal space

Difficulty learning new

vocabulary, understanding
questions, following
directions, recalling
information, comprehending
spoken or read material;
difficulty in reading and
writing; difficulty following
verbal direction; difficulty
with structural analysis;
difficulty learning new
material; difficulty with word
substitution; inability to
understand abstract concepts;
difficulty connecting old
knowledge to new lessons

Repetitive behaviors, blinking,

head bobbing, may develop
aggressive behaviors to cope with
their inability to communicate
effectively

Less likely to initiate conversation

with peers, potentially isolated
from their social surroundings

Strengths
Creative (tendency to seek
novelty), enthusiastic energy,
quick thinking

diverse

High-functioning Autism
Other Health Impairments &
Orthopedic Impairments (skeletal & muscular)

Academic
Characteristics
Most people with high
functioning autism perform
comparably with their peers;
wide ability range; uneven skill
development varied strengths
& weaknesses; significant speech
deficits (mutism & echolalia);

Behavioral
Characteristics
Repetitive body movements;
constant fidgeting; obsessive
attachment to unusual objects; a
strong need for order; clumsy;
preoccupation with a specific
topic of interest; need for
structure and sameness; lack
spontaneity and imagination;
temper tantrums; aggression;
property destruction

Social
Characteristics
Few social interactions, lack of
eye contact, lack of
conversation continuity;
difficulty with making friends;
unlikely to approach others and
pursue social interaction;
specific food preferences;
difficulty relating to others;
isolated; resistant to contact;
sleep difficulty; extremely
sensitive to sensory experiences
noise, clothes, textures, touch,
& temperature

Strengths

Can range from below average to

above averagedependent upon
disorder; sometimes disorder can
adversely affect educational
performance because of need for
special accomodations; academic
deficits due to physical
limitations; miss class for
therapy;

Can involve a wide range of

traits; including, but not
confined to: difficulty with fine
motor skills, maintaining
balance, chewing/swallowing,
involuntary movements, poor
coordination, speech difficulties

May be socially awkward due

Capable of anything they put
to circumstances surrounding
their mind to; impairment may
their disorder, but otherwise can make them more independent
be normal; tire easily; difficulty
making friends;
isolated/withdrawn; need more
space in group settings; may
have a personal assistant that
separates him/her from
classmates because of
awkwardness; may have
difficulty communicating with
others

Have the potential to become

highly productive and can
develop their specific strengths
to a competitive level;
exceptional rote memory;
focuses and becomes an expert